D. Healthy Living · Healthy Living

What's in Smoke and Vapes? Effects on Smokers and People Around Them

D1.4 D3.2 A1.6About 45 minutes

Learning goals

I can name substances found in tobacco and vaping products, such as nicotine, tar and carbon monoxide, and describe how they affect health.
I can describe short-term and long-term effects of smoking and vaping.
I can explain how second-hand smoke and vapour affect people nearby, and how Ontario's laws protect people.

Words to know

tobacco
A plant whose leaves are dried and used in cigarettes and cigars. Commercial tobacco products are harmful.

vaping
Breathing in an aerosol (a mist of tiny particles) from an electronic cigarette, or vape.

nicotine
An addictive drug found in tobacco and in most vaping products.

tar
A sticky brown substance in cigarette smoke that coats the lungs and stains teeth and fingers.

carbon monoxide
A poisonous gas in cigarette smoke (and car exhaust) that takes the place of oxygen in your blood.

addiction
When a person's body and brain feel they need a substance, and it is very hard to stop using it, even when it causes harm.

first-hand smoke
Smoke that a smoker breathes in.

second-hand smoke
Smoke breathed in by people nearby, from the burning cigarette and from the smoker breathing out.

A mystery mixture

Imagine a drink that came with a label saying: Contains poison gas, a sticky substance that coats your lungs, and a drug that makes it hard to stop. Would you drink it? Of course not! But that's what is in cigarette smoke. Today you'll find out what's inside tobacco and vaping products and what they do to the body, for the person using them and for people around them.

Remember from Grade 3

You learned that some substances are legal for adults but still harmful, like tobacco and alcohol, and that second-hand smoke can make others sick. This year you'll learn exactly what's inside and how it hurts the body.

Substance	Where it's found	What it does to the body
Nicotine	tobacco and most vaping liquids	A drug that is very addictive. It makes the heart beat faster and raises blood pressure. Young people's brains are still developing and are especially sensitive to nicotine; it can affect attention and learning.
Tar	cigarette smoke	A sticky brown gunk that coats the lungs, makes breathing harder, and stains teeth and fingers yellow-brown. Tar contains chemicals that can cause cancer.
Carbon monoxide	cigarette smoke (also car exhaust)	A poisonous gas that takes the place of oxygen in the blood, so muscles and the heart get less oxygen. Smokers get out of breath faster.
Flavourings and other chemicals	vaping liquids and their aerosol	Vape aerosol is not just water vapour. It contains nicotine, flavourings, other chemicals and tiny particles that are breathed deep into the lungs.

Tobacco smoke has thousands of chemicals, and many of them are harmful. These are the big ones to know.

Three harmful substances in cigarette smoke and the part of the body each one affects.

Short-term and long-term effects

Short-term effects happen soon after starting. Long-term effects build up over many years.

	Short-term effects	Long-term effects
Smoking	bad breath; smelly hair and clothes; yellow teeth and fingers; coughing; getting out of breath in sports; faster heartbeat; addiction can start quickly; costs a lot of money	lung diseases that make breathing very hard; heart disease and stroke; many kinds of cancer, including lung cancer; wrinkled skin; gum disease
Vaping	coughing, sore throat; nicotine addiction; trouble focusing when the nicotine wears off; costs money	addiction that is hard to break; harm to the lungs; scientists are still learning about the long-term effects because vaping is fairly new

Effects on the person who smokes or vapes (first-hand).

Second-hand smoke and vapour

Second-hand smoke comes from the burning end of a cigarette and from the smoke a smoker breathes out. People nearby breathe it in even if they never smoke. It has the same harmful chemicals.

Children are hurt more easily because their lungs are still growing. Second-hand smoke can cause children to have:

more coughs, colds and chest infections,
more ear infections,
more asthma attacks.

Second-hand vapour also contains nicotine and other chemicals, so it's best not to breathe it either.

Ontario's laws protect people

In Ontario:

You must be 19 to buy tobacco or vaping products.
Smoking and vaping are not allowed on school property, in indoor public places, on playgrounds and sports fields, and in a car when anyone under 16 is inside.

Second-hand smoke comes from the burning end and from the smoke breathed out. People nearby breathe it in.

Traditional tobacco is different

For many First Nations people, traditional tobacco is a sacred medicine. It is used in ceremonies, prayers and as an offering to show respect and thanks, not for recreational smoking. This is very different from commercial tobacco in cigarettes, which is made and sold by companies and has many added chemicals. When we talk about the harms of smoking in this lesson, we mean commercial tobacco.

Worked example

Let's follow a cigarette's smoke

What happens in the body when someone smokes one cigarette?

Nicotine reaches the brain in seconds. The heart beats faster and the brain begins to want more nicotine.
Carbon monoxide enters the blood and takes the place of some oxygen, so the body gets less oxygen.
Tar settles in the lungs and airways, making them sticky and harder to keep clean.
The smoke drifts out into the air, where people nearby breathe it in too.

One cigarette affects the brain, heart, blood and lungs of the smoker, and the lungs of people nearby.

Worked example

Let's sort the effects

Sort these effects of smoking into short-term or long-term: yellow teeth, lung cancer, getting out of breath in soccer, heart disease, smelly clothes.

Short-term effects happen soon: yellow teeth, getting out of breath in soccer, smelly clothes.
Long-term effects build up over years: lung cancer, heart disease.

Short-term: yellow teeth, out of breath, smelly clothes. Long-term: lung cancer, heart disease.

Hands-on activity

Straw breathing (what it feels like)

You need: a clean drinking straw for each person, a timer, and a grown-up.

Stand up and march on the spot for 30 seconds.
Now put the straw in your mouth, gently pinch your nose closed, and breathe only through the straw for 15 seconds while standing still. (Stop right away if you feel dizzy or uncomfortable.)
Breathe normally again. How did that feel?
Talk about it: people with lung diseases from smoking can feel like they're not getting enough air, even when resting.
Then make a "What's in a cigarette?" poster: draw a cigarette and label nicotine, tar and carbon monoxide with one effect for each.

Grown-up note: don't do the straw part if your child has asthma or another breathing condition; just do the poster.

Your turn

Name three substances in tobacco smoke.

Which substance makes smoking and vaping addictive?

What does carbon monoxide do in the body?

What does tar do?

Is vape aerosol just water vapour? Explain.

Name two ways second-hand smoke can affect children.

How old do you have to be to buy tobacco or vaping products in Ontario?

More practice: warm-up

True or false: second-hand smoke can hurt people who don't smoke.

What colour can tar stain teeth and fingers?

Is smoking allowed on school property in Ontario?

Is "bad breath" a short-term or long-term effect of smoking?

Where else is carbon monoxide found besides cigarette smoke?

More practice: on your own

Why might a smoker get out of breath faster when playing hockey?

Why are children hurt more easily by second-hand smoke than adults?

Explain the difference between first-hand and second-hand smoke.

Why does Ontario ban smoking in cars with children under 16?

Why do scientists say they are "still learning" about long-term effects of vaping?

Challenge

A vape ad shows bright colours and candy flavours. Why might a company make vapes look and taste this way? Think critically.

Explain how traditional tobacco used by many First Nations is different from commercial tobacco.

Someone says, "Smoking only hurts the person who chooses to smoke." Give two reasons this is wrong.

Check your understanding

Quiz

Which substance in tobacco makes it addictive?

Carbon monoxide...

Which is a long-term effect of smoking?

Vape aerosol...

Second-hand smoke can cause children to have more...

In Ontario, smoking is not allowed...

For parents and teachers

Big idea: This lesson covers two Grade 4 expectations: identify substances (e.g., nicotine, carbon monoxide, tar) found in tobacco and vaping products, and describe their effects on health (D1.4), and describe the short- and long-term effects of first- and second-hand smoke on smokers and on people around them (D3.2), including the effects of vaping. Wording is summarized from the 2019 Ontario curriculum.

Facts used: Ontario's minimum age to buy tobacco and vaping products is 19. The Smoke-Free Ontario Act bans smoking and vaping on school property, in enclosed public places, on playgrounds and sports fields, and in vehicles with anyone under 16 present.

If someone in your family smokes or vapes: your child may feel worried. Reassure them that adults make their own choices, that nicotine is very hard to quit, and that it is not the child's job to fix it. If you are thinking about quitting, free help is available through your doctor, pharmacist or local public health unit.

Traditional tobacco: the lesson explains respectfully that for many First Nations, traditional tobacco is a sacred medicine used in ceremony, which is different from commercial tobacco.

Activity safety: skip the straw-breathing part for children with asthma or breathing conditions.

This lesson also builds critical and creative thinking (A1.6), especially about advertising.